Tough Love
by MegaKat
Summary: It's not easy being in love with the strongest warrior in the universe, especially when he's your brother's best friend and thinks he's a little too old for you... a fluffeh, smutteh triple-shot for my loyal fans... thanks for tolerating my squirrelness! T for now... it'll change... they always do, right?
1. Chapter 1

**Alright, this is going to be a smutteh, fluffeh triple-shot :D Just got the idea and decided to roll with it. I'm also working on Sac and History right now, and I also have a new TGS AU story up! Enjoy and Happy Vday!**

Usagi sighed as she finally found her brother in his usual hideout on the main balcony, leaning against a pillar and watching the Earth from afar. "Hey, Gee Gee," she greeted him before giving him a nonchalant kiss on the cheek and leaning over the balcony a little to look for their bodyguards. As usual her brother hadn't greeted her aloud; he'd merely given her a little nod coupled with an affectionate glimmer in his eyes before returning his gaze to the Earth while his eyes became unfocused and he began to think about… whatever it was that Vegeta thought about all the time.

"What's eating you, Gee Gee? _Really_," she added quickly, cutting off his customary smartass answer for everything. "I'm your sister, you can tell me anything."

"You don't tell me everything," he countered smoothly as he smirked over at her. "Ah! Don't you dare lie to me, Usa. I know you don't, so don't try to deny it."

With a little huff, Usagi looked over the balcony once more and was satisfied not to see any bodyguards. "I can't smell like you can, Geta. Are any of the hulking lugs within earshot?"

"Nah. Raditz is off with Ruka and Mich and Nappa's… chasing your friend."

Usagi blinked at that and frowned at her brother. Had she just heard a hint of… _jealousy _in his voice? Seriously? "So _that's_ what's been bothering you. I'd suspected for weeks, you know."

"Excuse me?" He growled softly.

"Oh, you're in love with her, admit it. Did you feel the pull, Geta? Does she know? Don't worry, I haven't said anything to her, I know how you are," she added with a reassuring smile.

"I know you haven't, Rabbit."

"You should go after her, Geta. Especially if you've felt the pull."

Vegeta thought hard about it for the millionth time and slowly shook his head. "No. Nappa has served our family well and I won't take that from him."

"If you'd been paying better attention," Usagi muttered into the railing, "you'd know that you weren't taking _anything_ from him."

"Wha!?"

"Ah, so eloquent coming from the mighty Saiyan prince," she giggled. "You heard me, Gee Gee. Nappa's not after _her_." Usagi grinned when Vegeta immediately approached the balcony railing and stared her down. "Ah, I see I have your attention, Geta. So, tell me…"

"_**Anything**_," he said quickly, his eyes wide as he processed the new development. "Name it and I'll do it." Vegeta watched his baby sister lick her lips before looking back at the Earth, a faraway, almost hopeless look in her eyes.

"Anything?" She breathed so softly that his Saiyan ears barely heard her.

Damn it, he'd sworn not to, but… he knew what she wanted, and her eyes told him that she clearly knew that he knew. "Alright. Anything. Just name it."

"Then tell me, Geta. Do I even have a chance?"

"More than you think, Rabbit." Vegeta sighed and leaned over the balcony as well, his side pressing lightly to hers as they pined in companionable silence.

"Why wouldn't you tell me, then?"

"Rabbit," Vegeta sighed, "he's my best friend. My _only_ friend, at that. He tells me a lot of things, and there are very few of them that he swears me to secrecy over. That was one of them. That's why I've been _trying_ to get you to go to the training room, but you blow me the fuck off every time."

"Oh?" Vegeta had been awfully insistent on her training as of late, but he'd never elaborated on the fact, he'd simply told her she should go to the gravity room and do some of the workouts he'd taught her.

"I'd sworn not to tell you anything, but I _never_ swore not to try and put you two in the same room," he chuckled.

"Wait… you're saying that he's been in the gravity room _every_ time you've told me to go there!?"

"Every. Single. Time. And it's getting awfully close to the full Earth, too," he added with a little waggle of his eyebrows.

Usagi's eyes went wide when something important dawned on her. "Wait a damned minute, Geta! You're telling me that you _approve_ of this!?"

Suddenly serious, Vegeta nodded slowly. "He's the strongest, Usagi. He's the _only _one that's worthy of my sister. In fact, he was worried that I'd beat the shit out of him when he first told me. He actually went to level four just in case," he snickered. "I can't blame him, though. In his position I would have been just as worried… _no one_ wants to piss me off."

"Oh, puh-lease, Gee Gee. I piss you off all the time and so does he."

"Which is why the two of you are _**perfect **_for each other. You're the _only_ two people in the universe that can piss me off and survive it."

"So… is he out there now?"

"Yup." Vegeta's eyes hit his hairline and he used his Saiyan speed to stop her as she turned and sped off towards her room to change clothes. "Oh hell no! I just broke a major rule of honor and you're _**leaving me hanging**_!?"

"Oh! Nappa's _**really **_after Hotaru and it was Ami's idea to use herself as a decoy so he could get a chance to spend time with her, bye!" Usagi babbled off at warp speed before dashing down the hallway.

Vegeta was grumbling to himself and trying to come up with a way to approach the object of his desire when his baby sister returned, ready for training. "Holy shit, Rabbit."

"What? It's my normal training clothes," she replied with a very knowing smile.

"Yeah… but around _him_?" Vegeta snickered and slowly shook his head in wonder. "Congratulations, baby sister. You'll be mated by the end of the day, I guarantee it."

"One can only hope. So… I have to ask a couple things that have been bothering me, Gee Gee."

Vegeta snorted at that and just stared at her. "I only have one question. _Why in the hell_ are you standing here talking to your older brother when you could be in the gravity room having angry post-sparring sex?"

"Because I want to know why, if he's interested, that he's been avoiding me."

"Ah. Well, besides you being the all-powerful heir to the moon kingdom…" Vegeta laughed and shook his head in much the same manner as he had with his best friend. "The dumbass thinks he's too old for you."

"Get the fuck out!" Usagi snapped, giving her brother a light shove. "You're serious!? He's _your age_ and you're only fifteen years my senior! Dear gods!"

"That's what he said. Third-class idiot."

"I've told you not to call him that," Usagi chastised him. "He may be third class but he can still wipe the floor with you, mister-level-three." As usual, Vegeta only huffed at her in annoyance and rolled his eyes. "So… the other question. When I go in there and put the moves on him, what are we going to tell our parents?"

"I'll deal with your mother and you deal with my father." Vegeta had already thought that over and it still seemed like the best option. "You've got my father wrapped around your little finger, Usa. You might not be of his blood, but he sure as hell thinks you are. And Serenity has always listened to me far better than she has you, so I'll talk to her. I'm sure Father will as well."

"Alright then. Well… wish me luck, Geta. I'm going to need it."

#####################

Pulling on her black fighting gloves, Usagi heard the sounds of training coming from inside the gravity room and hesitated for only a moment before punching in the override code to enter. The gravity hit her like a sack of rocks the moment she was through the airlock, but she actually held her footing for a moment before hitting her knees and fighting for air as her muscles quivered in protest.

"Shit, Usagi!"

She could suddenly breathe and felt a pair of lightly-furred arms wrapped tightly around her as she panted and gasped for air, resting her forehead against a chest that smelled like the best thing to ever hit her nose. "The hell—you have it—set on?"

"Seven hundred times Vegeta-sai's normal gravity," a sexy, smug baritone voice replied. That voice made her melt a little inside; she hadn't heard him speak in over a week, and until just then she hadn't realized how much she'd missed it. "You alright, Usa?"

"Fine, Kakarot, thanks. Just… just give me a moment," she whispered, loathe to tell him she was fine. If she did that he'd only release her, and she was really enjoying the feel of him holding her tightly to his bare, muscular chest.

"You should have hit the call button, Usa. You know how I crank it up when I'm training alone," he said seriously as he checked her over carefully for injury, trying his very best to ignore the bare skin pressing against his own.

"Well, it's been so long since you let me spar with you I'd forgotten," she replied, not bothering to hide the hurt in her voice.

"Sorry, Usa. I've just… had a lot on my mind lately. I needed some quiet time to think alone." Kakarot purred soothingly and kissed her forehead when she sighed wearily, and he carefully helped set her on her feet. That was when he realized how little she was wearing and he blushed so brightly that the hue matched his Super Saiyan four fur. "Aren't you… cold?"

Concealing her true intent, Usagi played innocent and shrugged. "It's always warm in here and I never wear anything heavier when I train with Geta. I'm usually pouring sweat by the time he's through putting me through the paces. Why? I… you're not uncomfortable, are you?"

"No… you've just… filled out a bit since we trained together last time." Two years ago, by his count. Ever since she'd turned sixteen and he'd felt the pull with her for the first time. He'd kept his distance as much as possible since then, especially so close to the full Earth.

Usagi feigned a disappointed look and shrugged a little. "I'll go away if you want, Kakarot. I don't want to get in your way or distract you from your training or anything. I would train with my brother, but he's been awfully preoccupied lately. He can't concentrate on anything but a certain blue-haired princess," she added with a chuckle.

Kakarot frowned at that and shook his head. "Poor Vegeta… his honor won't allow him to go after her so long as Nappa's interested. And you shouldn't laugh, Usagi," he growled. "His frustration and heartache is _anything_ but funny."

Usagi's eyes softened at what he was implying about himself and not just her brother, but she still smiled and shook her head. "No, what Geta only just found out—because I told him," she added in a conspiratorial whisper, "is that Nappa's only friends with Ami. He's actually after Hotaru. Ami is totally free to pursue. I can still sense Geta's ki where I left him, though. I think he's planning some sort of battleplan," she chuckled.

"Typical Vegeta," Kakarot agreed. "Can't blame him, though. Taking a mate is a very serious ordeal. Any Saiyan male should give it a lot of consideration without just giving into the damn hormones."

"Tell that to Broly," Usagi giggled. "He's been very… hm, not aggressive… but… what's that word in Saiyan again?" She asked. She always had trouble finding the right words in her brother's native language, but she knew that Kakarot wasn't horribly well-versed in Lunarian and she usually chose to speak in Saiyan with him.

"Persistent, maybe?" Kakarot growled, unable to even mask his jealousy so close to the full Earth. When Usagi nodded and shrugged he grabbed her by her arms and tilted her chin up with his tail so that her eyes were locked with his, and he regretted it the moment he felt the pull for the millionth time since she'd turned sixteen. "Listen to me," he ground through his teeth, "don't you dare let Broly pressure you into anything, do you understand me? And if he does, Usa—look at me, damn it, I'm _serious_. If he does, you flare your ki as high as you can and I will find you no matter what and I will fucking _kill him_."

"O—Ok, Kada…" she stammered out softly.

"Don't call me that, either, Usa. _I'm not_ your dad," he snapped. He instantly regretted it when her eyes looked down and away and welled up with tears.

"Didn't mean it that way," she whispered, but she didn't fight him when he tugged her to his chest and wrapped his red tail around her waist tightly, while he purred gently in an attempt to apologize.

"Forgive me, Usa... I'm… agitated lately, what with the full Earth coming up." He released her after a couple minutes once he'd gotten his beast under control; it wanted to rub itself all over her to cover her in his scent, but if he held her much longer she was going to feel the evidence of how badly her very presence aroused him.

"Come on, let's spar or something; it'll work off all that excess energy of yours," she suggested at an attempt at levity. Gods, he was way more worked up than she'd ever seen him, and she secretly wondered if he was getting close to going through a burning phase. She hoped not; she definitely wanted him to finally take her to bed, but she'd seen what could happen to a woman—even a willing one—when a Saiyan's inner beast got a little too out of hand during those intense three days.

"Warm-ups first, Usa. How long has it been since you've been in here?"

"Uh… I don't know. About a month ago with Geta. Ever since I turned eighteen, mother's been keeping me busy with running the moon. She's thinking about abdicating to me and travelling to Vegeta-sai on a more permanent basis."

Kakarot finally smiled down at her. "Well, Your Majesty," he chuckled, "that's excellent news. I'll be the first to bow to you."

"I'm sure you will," Usagi replied tartly. "Let's start with me beating you into the dirt, hm?"

"As my queen commands," he replied with a savage little smirk.

**R&R! I love yall!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Ok, ok. It won't be a triple shot. But it'll be short. Like, 5-7 chapters or so. :P Now that I've got this whole idea for a longer plot and everything…**

Usagi hadn't been so relaxed in months; it was simply amazing to her how Kakarot's presence totally washed away all of the stress from the last several months. Her mother was probably going to abdicate and Usagi couldn't blame her; why in the hell should she have to run one planet and help run another when her daughter was of age and more than capable of taking over for her?

Kakarot was also experiencing a level of calm that he hadn't felt in two years. Ever since he'd felt the pull for Usagi, he'd avoided her socially, seeing her only during formal functions and as her bodyguard. He still saw her almost every day, but it was always in a professional setting, and he'd made it clear to her over a decade ago that work was just that; he couldn't play or be her friend while he was guarding her. "Arm needs to be straighter," he mumbled, keeping an eye on her form during their warm-ups.

"Hm?"

He smiled at that, Usagi had always been so Saiyan during katas that it always put a grin on his face. Just like Vegeta and himself, she would space out and focus on whatever was bothering her while her body went through the motions of limbering up. "Here," he offered, moving in behind her to take her arms lightly in his hands, his body pressed tightly to hers.

Kakarot and Vegeta had taught her just like that years ago, and back then the bare heat of his chest pressing to her slightly sweaty skin hadn't mattered—but now it did, and Usagi felt herself flush with pleasure as he manipulated her arms, then her hands as he slid his fingers down to link with hers. "Two months without training at all is making you sloppy," he teased, allowing his beast to simply purr with pleasure from the contact with the woman it wanted. "Did Vegeta have to do this with you last time?"

"Hey, be nice!" She snorted. "And actually, no. We didn't do warm-ups. Vegeta brought me in here when I was having a particularly bad day and he let me use him as a punching bag. Of course, I didn't leave a damned scratch on him, but I appreciated the gesture."

"What had happened to put you in such an ill mood?" Kakarot wondered aloud. Usagi was very rarely ever angry; the woman simply had the temperament of kitten… unless someone in her family… or Broly… had set her off. "It was Broly, wasn't it?" He growled a little when she nodded and held her even tighter as his protective instincts started kicking in. "What did he do?"

Usagi blushed at that and shook her head. "I… it's embarrassing. Nothing awful, I assure you," she quickly added, knowing exactly what he would think if she didn't elaborate. "Trust me, if it had been, Geta would have been scraping him off of the bottom of his boot." She got quiet then, but when Kakarot grunted at her to continue, she sighed. "Still so bossy, aren't you?"

"Just tell me, Usa. If Vegeta didn't kill him, I _probably _won't." It would have been funny if it weren't true; there were a lot of things that would set Kakarot off as a potential mate to her that wouldn't necessarily set off her older brother.

When her tight-lipped silence only continued, Kakarot spun her around and glared down at her. "Tell me," he ordered firmly, "or I'll go track the rat bastard down myself and wring his neck."

Eyes widening a little in surprise, Usagi licked her suddenly dry lips and stared up at him. "He um… you know. Tried to kiss me. And it wasn't a friendly kiss, either," she added shyly, glancing down and away from him. "It's alright, though, I handled it. When he wouldn't let me go I slapped him in the face and that brought him around. No!" She said quickly, when he instantly released her and he headed for the door. "Kakarot, please! It's over, alright? Sweet goddess, it was a _month_ ago!"

"He shouldn't have touched you in the _first place_," he snarled viciously, his eyes glowing red as he shifted back to level four. "And when you told him to stop he should have _listened_, Usagi. He needs to be taught a fucking lesson."

Sighing dejectedly, the princess simply crossed the gravity room to hug him tightly. "Please, Kakarot. I was having such a good time. I was finally relaxing for the first time in weeks, and I'd rather you stay and keep me company. I've missed you," she whispered. "You never have time for me anymore." Usagi knew she'd hit a major sore spot when she felt his emotional pain through her empathic powers and nuzzled her face into his chest. "I know you have your duties, Kakarot. I'm not mad at you… hell, I don't think I could ever be mad at you."

Damn it. He couldn't spend time with her anymore, not with his beast raging against its barriers whenever he so much as smelled her. But not being around him made her sad, and Kakarot wanted nothing more than for her to be happy. Maybe… "Usa… do you want Broly? Would he make you happy?"

Such a question shocked her to the core and she just gaped at him like he'd grown a second tail. "Are you _**nuts**_!?" She finally exclaimed. "He's fine as a person and I wouldn't mind being his friend, but as a potential husband he's downright awful! There's not even any chemistry there for me; when he kissed me it was like kissing my brother!" Usagi made a disgusted face at that and gagged a little. "Shit, Kakarot… I think kissing Geta would have been better than _that_. Ew. Just… ew."

That was when Kakarot's beast slipped the leash unnoticed for a moment and asked the question that had been burning in the Saiyan's mind. "Well, who _do_ you want, then?"

Caught between a desperate need to finally tell him how deeply in love with him she was, and the desire to lie through her teeth, Usagi just blushed and looked away again, suddenly very aware of the quiet vibration of his purr and the way he was holding her tightly to him.

"Well? You can tell me, Usa, I won't run off and tell your brother or anything." _Shut up shut up shut up! _He chanted loudly in his own head, pounding down on his inner Saiyan and throwing it back in its cage. _BEHAVE, damn it!_

During the several second span it took to get his beast under control, Usagi's face had gotten a lot closer to his and he could feel her using his solid frame for balance as she stood on her tiptoes. _Oh, fuck._

His beast flew right back out of the cage the moment he felt her breath on his chin, and before he could stop himself he was closing the gap and pressing his lips to hers. He groaned when her fingers tangled in his long black hair and pulled him down to bring him closer, and Kakarot couldn't help himself when he felt her tongue sliding over his lower lip, begging entrance. "Usa…"

Damn it, his lips were even softer and tasted sweeter than she'd ever imagined in the late night dreams that usually woke her, sweaty and panting and wishing she could just track him down to finish the job. "You," she whispered, yanking him back down by his bangs, her other hand seeking out his tail to stroke it gently.

The jolt of raw pleasure running through him was what made him realize what was happening, and in one swift motion he had Usagi pinned to the wall of the gravity room and he was growling down at her, his beast securely chained. This _couldn't _happen. She was the princess, the heir to the moon, and his best friend's brother. Never mind that Vegeta had pretty much given him the green light; Kakarot was not about to fuck up any chance that Usagi had for a royal marriage and legitimate children.

"You think this is a _game_, Usagi!? I'm a male Saiyan warrior! The strongest in the universe! I'm not some quick fuck for a princess looking for an adventure!" Kakarot yelled at her. Yelling was the only way. The only way to make her go away and never come back. It killed him inside to do it, but if she so much as kissed him again, he was going to claim her, plain and simple. "Stop fucking with my damned hormones, woman," he growled softly as he released her.

Usagi just stared at him, her entire body trembling and her eyes wide; she couldn't even process the fact that her friend—that _**Kakarot**_ of all people—had not only screamed in her face, but… he'd accused her of teasing him! "K—K—Kada, I—"

"For the last time, woman_, I am not your fucking father_!" He roared, his eyes glowing slightly as his beast began to come out in response to his mate's fear of him.

That undid her, and the moon princess shoved at him and fled, the tears she'd been holding back flowing down her face as she headed for the only safe place she knew.

#######################

_Geta!? __**Geta, please**__!_

Vegeta perked up at the very first ki summons from his sister, and on the second he assessed from her ki that she was bawling her eyes out rather uncontrollably. "Ami, I'm needed, I'll be back shortly. No one comes in this lab without clearance, understand me?"

"Whatever, Vegeta," the blue-haired genius sighed, not even taking her eyes off of what she was working on.

Vegeta ascended straight to level three for speed the moment he was on the ground level and blasted straight to the royal balcony to find his little sister still dressed in her sparring clothes, hugging her knees as she sobbed wildly. "Whoa, Rabbit," he whispered into her hair, immediately pulling her to his chest and purring comfort, his tail going tightly around her waist. "Calm down. Tell me what happened." Vegeta grit his teeth at the thought, but the question had to be asked even if he didn't smell blood. "Did he… did he force you to do anything?"

"NO! I kissed him and he accused me of toying with his Saiyan hormones! He said that I was just a little princess looking to put a notch in my belt!" She yelled, her cries barely muffled by his armor.

"He did WHAT!?"

Usagi yanked him back down to her when he tried to leap to his feet and shook her head vigorously. "No, Geta! If he really thinks that of me, then I don't want him!" She cried. "Fuck him and his damned Saiyan attitude, his hormones, his pride… and everything else about him! I HATE HIM!"

"He felt the pull for you," Vegeta growled. "And I gave him my blessing. This won't go unanswered, Usa, I swear it."

#######################

"KAAAAAKAAAAAAROOOOOOOOOOOOT!"

That war cry of his own name was the only warning that the youngest son of Bardock got before his armor was shattered with a single blow and a second sent him flying through—not into, but through—the nearest storage shed just outside of the gravity room. "Kay," he wheezed as he ascended to match his best friend's strength, "I deserved that."

"And more," Vegeta snarled. "I ought to sever your head and bring it back to my sister to restore her honor," he continued, leaning down to yank Kakarot up by his long golden hair, "but I _can't_," he finished with a snap of his teeth.

"I wouldn't blame you Vegeta," he sighed. "The things I said to her… she hates me, doesn't she?"

"No, that's the problem! She says she does, but the little bleeding heart is so in love with you that it hurts _**me**_ to look at her! She's done nothing but cry for the last four hours and it finally wore her out and she dozed off in my arms." Vegeta flung him back onto the ground with a huff of contempt, but when Kakarot stood, Vegeta leveled him with a punch to the nose. "You are so lucky that she told me not to kill you!" He ranted, swinging and putting the other warrior on his ass a third time in five minutes with a punch to his jaw.

Kakarot rubbed at the minor fracture and sighed. "I'm sorry, for what it's worth. My inner beast was fighting me, Vegeta, and the only thing I could think of to get her out of there was to yell at her. I didn't mean any of those things I said, I swear it. I just didn't want to wind up taking her."

"That's what she _**wanted**_, you fucking jackass! What part of 'my sister is in love with you' didn't you fucking _**understand**_!?"

"Tell me what to do and I'll do it, Vegeta. I'll make it right. Whatever you say," he replied morosely.

"Oh, hell no! You just broke my baby sister's heart and you want _**my advice**_!? Go to _**HELL**_, Kakarot!"

**I love Vegeta. :D He can be my older brother anytime!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Long author's note! Just for you, Alistar! Since you did an anon review, I get to air this out in the intro to the chapter, yay! So. I actually love Broly as a character, and normally don't make him a sissy of any sort. And he isn't a sissy in this story. He's a plot catalyst. A plot catalyst for a very SHORT fanfic that I'm writing while I'm fighting writer's block on the ridiculous amount of other stories I'm working on. That said, it's FANFICTION. Don't take it so literally! This Broly is NOT the LSSJ, which you did mention, "unless he's not the LSSJ." He's not in this fic. And seriously. If he's so fucking powerful, then how did he get his ass whooped in three separate movies? Teamwork. If his power was SO LIMITLESS, he wouldn't have gotten beaten at all. It would have been the end of DBZ altogether after the very first Broly movie. That said… THE MOVIES AREN'T EVEN CANON. Maybe the canon Broly is a total pussy or a sweetheart like Tarble. Ok, Tarble's not canon either. But you get my point I'm sure. **

**Ok, now I've had my little rant and I'm tired of responding to fanboy butthurt. If you want to read a more faithful version of Broly in a fic that I haven't **_**just thrown together at the drop of a hat**_**, read History or Sacrifice. Thank you, that is all, and despite your butthurt, thank you for your readership.**

**Now, warning! This chapter has a little M content in it, but nothing on the level of the usual. So enjoy, and if you don't like it piss off!**

"I heard about last night, Usa. I'm sorry that he made you cry."

"Broly… I am not even… having this… conversation… with… you…" Usagi panted between kicks at the heavy bag in the gravity room, imagining that it was Kakarot's head with every blow she landed. _Gods, I punt his noggin to the Earth given the chance. Fucking asshole. _

"I'd never make you cry, Usagi. I'd do everything I could to make you happy, I swear it."

The princess ground her teeth a little at the words; Broly sounded so sincere and genuinely concerned for her that she hated to tell him to piss off, but she was in such a dangerous mood that anything with a cock stood a good chance of getting walloped. "Not… now… Broly…"

"Then _when_, Usa?" Broly sighed with obvious annoyance. "When are we going to have this conversation? I want you for my mate and you've known it for over a year, now. But you still refuse to give me an answer." The Super Saiyan barely blocked her kick in time when it rounded on him, and he was surprised to find her downright furious. "The hell, Usagi!?"

"You know why we haven't had that conversation Broly? Because I _never_ planned on having it with you! I wanted to have it with _him_, and you've done nothing but ride my ass about mating with you for a year when it's obvious that I don't want you! So, you know what? Let's have that conversation. NO. NEVER. NOT going to happen. And if you ever bring it up again, I swear by the goddess of the moon herself that my brother will have to get in line behind me to kick your ass. Understand!?"

Broly simply stared at her for a moment before closing his mouth and swallowing. "You could have told me a year ago, Usagi. And here you've been… stringing me along! Why!? What did I ever do—" Angry, tear-filled blue eyes glared at him as another kick came him way, this time connecting with his forearm. "Don't do that again, Usagi," he warned softly.

"_**Or you'll what**_!? And I never strung you along, Broly! I dropped every polite hint in the world that I wasn't interested in you as anything more than a friend, and when you tried to shove your tongue down my throat last month, I slapped you! THAT'S not an obvious rejection!? If it isn't, then I don't know what is!"

She was really getting in his face now, poking at his broad chest as she tipped her head back to actually make eye contact with him, and when his mouth suddenly swooped down to kiss her she bit down out of pure instinct, drawing blood.

################################

"She's waking up. Hey… hey… HEY! _**SHUT THE FUCK UP**_ EVERYONE!"

Usagi winced at the volume of the irritated male voice shouting, her head aching fiercely as the noise echoed in her head. "_You_ shuddup…" She slurred. "Assho…"

"Rabbit, you just called me an 'assho.' I think you have me confused with Raditz."

"Gee Gee…?" She inquired groggily, cracking her eyes open to see her brother's face swim and distort in her vision. "You're funny lookin'."

"You have a bad concussion, girl, lie still," a deeper, gruff voice ordered her sternly the moment she tried to move. "Do you remember what happened? Usagi, focus for me."

"Hn… Father?" Her assumptions were confirmed when a face identical to Vegeta's—plus a beard—came into her line of sight. "I…" Usagi closed her eyes for a moment and tried to think. The last thing she remembered was training in the gravity room to blow off some steam over the incident with Kakarot, and then Broly had—

Usagi's eyes snapped open quickly and she shoved at her brother and father's hands when they tried to keep her from moving, an actual growl erupting from her throat as she scanned the room hazily for the bastard that had struck her. "Where is he?" She snarled.

"I swear, _r'sha_… days like this really make me wonder if she's actually mine…"

"Maybe," Queen Serenity's voice answered, but not without a bit of worry. "My love, I've rebuilt some of my power since the last healing."

"Alright," the king replied after a moment's hesitation out of concern for his mate's well-being. "But if you start getting shaky again, you give it a rest, woman."

Shaky…? But shaky could only mean a serious healing… "Mother…? How bad…?"

"It… it was pretty bad, dearest," Serenity admitted softly, holding her daughter gently to her chest as she flooded her body with her healing light. "Just relax and tell your father who did this."

"No," Usagi said stubbornly. "Because I want first dibs on his sucker punching ass."

Vegeta grinned up at his father, a wave of relief washing through him. "If she's making threats, she's going to be fine, I think." But he was serious again as he examined his sister. "Give me a name, girl. Before I start pointing fingers at random people just to piss you off."

"Wait… you seriously don't know?" She whispered in confusion.

"We have our suspicions." King Vegeta frowned and looked away at that, growling softly in the back of his throat. The man that had hit his daughter was going to die. Slowly.

The unspoken question in Usagi's eyes made the prince sigh. "It was either Broly or Kakarot, Usagi. They were the only two scents on you. So—what?" Vegeta sputtered in worry when her eyes widened.

"Why… why would I smell like _Kakarot_? He… I haven't even seen him in three days, Geta. Not since… you know," Usagi sighed.

"Six," the king grunted before turning and hurrying from the room.

"Huh?"

"Six days. You've been out for three, Rabbit. And you just pissed Father off because there's nothing he can do about this, now," Vegeta muttered with abject relief. "I was worried that it had been Kakarot," he explained. "Because when we found him with you… and you were both covered in your blood… I… I nearly…" Vegeta swallowed, fighting back real tears at the memory of how he'd found her. He'd thought her dead the moment he'd clapped eyes on her, but… "Kakarot's ki was the only thing keeping you alive, Usa. And he… you should've seen him. His beast was in total, complete control. I tried to talk some sense into him, to convince him to let me move you, but he aimed an actual ki blast at my head and told me that if I got any closer he'd send me straight to Hell. Your mother was the only one that he'd let near you until she'd healed your skull."

"The crystal's been healing you since then. I was too weak after the first healing to do anything until now, despite all the power left in the silver crystal. Now that you're awake, you should be able to focus its energy into healing you faster, Usagi."

Wait a damned minute. Silver crystal? She had the silver crystal? "But Mother… that… that means…"

"We'll have an official abdication ceremony at a later date, and you'll be crowned queen. This incident only proved that I'm getting a little too old to effectively wield its power, sweetheart. It's time for you to take my place. I'll continue to run things for the next couple weeks while you recuperate, and give you some time to let it all sink in."

"But Mother… I can't ascend to the throne. I'm not married!" Usagi snorted.

"Vegeta has already filled me in on everything that led up to this, Usa. And if it weren't for that jackass of a Super Saiyan, you wouldn't still be alive. So I'm willing to consent to the union if that's what will make you happy. Your father is on his way to inform Kakarot of his approval as well."

"Oh. I thought he was on his way to kill Broly," Usagi replied absently, fighting off an urge to lie back down and sleep for a week.

"No. Kakarot already did that," Vegeta said seriously. "And no… you don't want to know the details."

Usagi's eyes widened a little and she managed a nod when she could have sworn that her brother had turned a little green at the thought. Any kind of bloodshed that actually made Vegeta nauseous was something she did not want to hear about. "Wait… then why did you suspect him?"

"Father and I both thought that you might have gotten caught in the crossfire between the two, if it wasn't just Broly who had nearly killed you. It was the only other thing that made sense. Father actually suggested putting Kakarot in the dungeon until you woke," Vegeta chuckled nervously. At that moment in time, he'd honestly thought they were all going to die when Kakarot had ascended straight to level four, eyes glowing a murderous red as he simply dared them all with a simple look to even _**try**_ it.

"Gee Gee… where is he…?" Usagi whispered softly, tears welling up in her eyes at the thought of even seeing him. Sure, his beast had come out in defense of her, had even saved her life. But Kakarot didn't want her. He'd made that perfectly clear.

"He left ten minutes before you woke, when he sensed you were coming around. Usa… he didn't leave your side except to use the bathroom. Not once. The only people that were allowed near you were myself and Ami," Serenity supplied. "He tolerated your brother and your father just enough to let them see you were fine, but then he kicked them out within minutes. He even slept with you, feeding you his ki throughout the night. He loves you," she sighed. "He just won't admit it to himself. Give him time, dear… your father had the same issues, you know."

Vegeta laughed at that and shook his head. "No, Mother, he acknowledges his love for her. But he thinks he's too fucking _**old **_for Usagi! That and the whole heir to the throne excuse," he snorted in amusement. "Damn it, Rabbit, don't cry," he huffed at the sight of her tears. "He saved your life so I forgive his jackassery last week. I'll speak with him."

"No. I want to see him. Right now," she whispered shakily. Usagi frowned and tried for her best glare when her brother firmly shook his head. Fine… she'd do it her way.

Vegeta groaned when he felt Usagi flare her ki a little before pulsing out Kakarot's name in the ki language that all Saiyan warriors used, and immediately sensed Kakarot's ki speeding towards them like a bullet. "And I'm leaving the room before he—" The door slamming open made Vegeta groan again and shake his head slowly, and he rose from his seat to hold his hands out peacefully. "Yes, Kakarot," he responded dryly to a deep, primal growl. "I was just leaving. She's all yours."

Huge blue eyes looked around the queen to gaze at the level four Saiyan warrior looking right back at her possessively, his tail trashing wildly behind him in anger. But Usagi turned her attention back to her brother momentarily to impart some advice. "Geta…? The whole reason Ami keeps blowing you off is because she didn't even know you felt the pull for her. That, and you're incredibly bossy and almost never talk to her except to bark an order. Try being nice," she finished with a soft smile. "I spoke to her the next morning, after… well, you know," she whispered with a quick, depressed glance at Kakarot. "She likes chess a lot. Try that… but don't be a sore loser when she kicks your ass."

"Heh… we'll see about that," Vegeta chuckled before turning serious. "You don't hesitate to call me if you need me, Usagi. I'll nightguard you if—" Another vicious noise from his best friend made him stop and roll his eyes. "Or not."

"That's as much as I can heal you for now, my daughter," Serenity sighed, withdrawing the light from Usagi with regret as the blonde's hand went to the throbbing side of her head. "I'll see about giving you some painkillers, dear. In the meantime, maybe Kakarot would see if a little of his ki can help?"

The man in question grunted in response as he moved to sit beside the princess, his fur-covered arms sliding around her to slowly and gently cradle her to his chest as a soft purr began to vibrate through them both. "I'll be going now, Usagi," Serenity informed her quietly, kissing her forehead. "If you need anything…"

"I know, just call," Usagi sighed, blushing more than a little when Kakarot boldly nuzzled her shoulder right in front of her mother. "Thank you, Kakarot," she whispered once her mother was gone and the door was shut. "For saving my life."

She gasped in surprise when he turned her head to nip gently at her lower lip in what she knew was a Saiyan kiss, her heart fluttering at the unexpected contact. Reaching up, she watched in wonder when he actually leaned into her touch as she ran her fingertips over his cheek, jaw and throat, his purr growing louder and hitching into a new rhythm that made her blush. She knew that sound; it was the sound the king made around her mother and Raditz made around Haruka and Michiru. "Your beast is still in total control isn't it?" Usagi gasped when he nipped at the fingertips that were travelling over his lips, her cheeks coloring when he grasped her hand and followed up with a flick of his tongue over them. "Kakarot?"

"Mine," he sighed, bending his head as he tugged her nightgown to the side and drug his teeth over her bare shoulder. Kakarot purred impossibly louder, his tail winding around her waist when she gasped and trembled at the sensation of his canines raking over her skin. "Mine," he breathed in her ear, followed by a gentle tugging of her earlobe and a flick of his tongue.

"Yours," she agreed, shivering with pleasure as his lips travelled down her throat. She's waited so long to hear that word from his mouth, to feel him touching and tasting her, and now that he was she couldn't help but feel a little nervous. But Usagi wanted him, there was still no doubt about that. "You can… if—if you want to…"

The temptation was definitely there, but the warrior shook his head slightly as he eased her onto her back and examined her head. "No. You're hurt, _r'sha_. Later. But…" Kakarot felt her tremble again, her heartbeat pounding in her chest as he kissed her shoulder, following up with a bite that left the tiniest of nicks in her skin.

"Sweet goddess… Kakarot… that feels…" Usagi whimpered when he licked the bead of blood from her flesh and couldn't stop her hands from tangling in his black spikes. "Don't stop, Kakarot… do it…"

Breathing heavily, he gave her a nod as his hands began to pull at her nightgown, fumbling with the buttons while his heated mouth explored her throat, working its way down to the newly bared skin. "Want you so badly, princess… I can't wait for you to heal."

Her hands shook as the first man to ever touch her fastened his lips to a freshly unclothed nipple and began to suck lazily while one of his hands boldly cupped her sex. "You don't have to stop, Kakarot," she offered nervously, unable to stop her body from arching into the fingers teasing her curls. "You can have all of me if you want."

A groan was her only response before she felt those soft lips move over her own, and she immediately opened to him when he flicked his tongue out to beg entrance. "No," he whispered between kisses, "when you're healed."

"Then… better stop," Usagi replied disappointedly, followed by a muffled moan when his fingers parted her folds and stroked over her entrance. "Kakarot—need to—"

"No," he purred, breaking away to nip at her shoulder. "I've dreamed of this, _r'sha_. Come for me while I mark you." His beast moaned when he felt her hand travel to his pants and her fingers brushed over his cloth-covered arousal. "No, Usagi… not yet…"

Leaning up, she nipped at his lower lip and boldly gave him a gentle squeeze. "You can touch me… but I can't touch you? That's awfully unfair, Kakarot." She licked her suddenly dry lips when his hand covered her own, but rather than pull it away from him, he used her palm to stroke himself slowly, his eyes fluttering shut to show his crimson lids. "It'll feel better without those leather pants in the way, Kakarot. We don't have to consummate the bond, but… I know what to do to make you feel good."

Usagi gasped in surprise and fear when he pinned her down and growled at her. "You've done this before?" He snapped jealously.

She immediately relaxed at that and just smiled, a little flattered that he was so jealous. "No, Kakarot. You forget that my cousin is a goddess of lust. Duh. I kind of got… curious, you know? So I asked Minako what you might enjoy… if you ever let me get close enough to touch you." She smiled a little nervously as she unbuttoned the tight pants and tugged at them. "Are they painted on, Kakarot? Dear gods, don't these hurt your balls?"

"They do right now," he admitted, helping her shrug them down far enough for him to remove the rest of the way. Kakarot's beast couldn't help but smirk proudly at her expression when he looked back down; her eyes were locked on his groin, and they were as big as saucers, her mouth hanging open just slightly. "Like what you see, _r'sha_?"

"I don't know whether to be happy or run away screaming," she choked.

"You know damned well what will happen if you run from me," he rumbled smugly. "If you _could _run in your current state."

"We'll have to initiate a chase at a later date," she whispered, unable to stop herself from reaching down to run her fingers over him. "It's so warm it's almost hot," she commented, unaware of the way his hands were bunching in the sheets beside her head as he forced himself to breathe. "Does… does that feel… am I doing it right, Kakarot?"

A low groan mixed in with his purr was a sufficient response and her hand grew a little bolder as she alternated between looking up at his reaction and glancing down to make sure she was doing as Mina had told her to. _Wrap you hand around the shaft and use long, firm strokes. Make sure to rub your palm over the head on occasion; men like that._ Usagi gasped as she felt his temperature increase in her hand almost instantly and he gave a single thrust before moaning loudly and making a mess all over her belly. Thankfully she'd been ready for that; Mina had warned her of everything to expect. "Was it good?"

"I've been burning for three days," he purred in her ear. "So yes… it was very, very good, Usagi."

_I knew it!_ "But how…?" She added aloud.

"Killing Broly helped it, and the fact that you're injured is stopping me from taking you," he sighed. "But I think it'll last longer without relief. Gods… I feel so much better, Usagi," he groaned into her throat. "And it's your turn in a minute," he added softly as he scooped up a towel from beside the bed and proceeded to wash of his seed.

**Ok, Sesshy. You wanted it now, and I have to go to work, so I cut off the extra smut I would have written. Aw. Pity.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Yet again, a little M content, but not the actual deed, lol… R&R!**

Kakarot mixed the powdered painkiller that the queen—obviously smart enough not to enter the room—had slid under the door with a glass of juice, and eased Usagi into a sitting position so she could drink. He examined her head for the millionth time as he fed her some of his ki, smiling at the feeling of her relaxing against him immediately in response to the warmth. "Are you focusing the silver crystal, Usagi?"

"Yeah, I am. It should be helping, isn't it?"

"Not as fast as I'd like, but yes. Ami did a fine job on the stitches once your mother was too drained to continue healing you." He sighed as he ran a hand over the area that had been shorn around the wound, happy that he'd at least saved some of the golden locks for himself. He loved her hair almost as much as he loved her and was glad that it was growing back rapidly thanks to the healing light that her mother had bequeathed her. "He only hit you once, you know."

Usagi closed her eyes and sighed. "I'd… I'd ask if it was a quick death, but I'm sure I know the answer already. My only question is… ok, two questions. No, three."

"Just ask," he snorted in amusement; the woman was always way too curious for her own good. Helping her to lie back down, Kakarot merely curled up beside her, relishing the feeling of her bare skin sliding over his own. She felt so cool to the touch, but he knew that was only due to the burning. That damned bi-annual mating drive couldn't have come at a better time for him, when his beast was more focused on his chosen mate's well-being than the act of claiming her. He was even in control again for the first time in three days, despite the fact that he was still burning up for more sexual release.

"How did you know I was in there?"

"I didn't," he admitted softly. "It was dumb blind stupid luck that I walked in at the right moment. The only thing I saw was Broly swinging and you falling; after that it was a bit hazy, but I remember him running while I was trying to keep your skull in place and give you my life force. I flared my ki for Vegeta and he snatched up your mother so fast that he was level three and had to have been flying like a bat out of hell to get to the gravity room as quickly as he did."

"Well, that answers part of the second question, but raises a new one. If you didn't kill him immediately and didn't leave my side, then when did you kill him?" Usagi asked in confusion.

"I did leave once, when your mother started to heal you some more and while Ami was stitching you up. I didn't want to leave but even my beast acknowledged that I was getting in the way and I didn't want you to suffer just because I was there. I tracked that fucker down while I was gone and…" He paused and shook his head slightly before brushing his lips over hers. "You don't need the gory details. Now time for me to ask a question. I don't condone what he did in the least, but I am curious as to what made him fly off the handle like that."

"I screamed in his face, kicked him twice when he accused me of leading him on… and then when he still tried to kiss me I bit him and drew blood. Not that I didn't deserve to get hit but—"

Kakarot cut her off with a savage growl and nipped at her shoulder in warning. "There's never an excuse to hit a woman like that, especially when she's so much weaker. And don't start about how you're a strong fighter, Usagi. You know what I fucking mean."

Usagi just yawned a little. The painkillers were kicking in and she didn't even feel like arguing with him; in fact, she didn't feel much of anything and she had to admit that it was a little wonderful. "Carrothead?"

"Third question?"

"Yeah," she whispered, snuggling in tightly with her head on his chest. "You're in control again and you still haven't bitten me. You're going to just walk away after the burning, aren't you?"

"You're the heir to the throne, Usagi." Kakarot fought his beast down and inwardly screamed at it to shut the fuck up.

"No, I'm the queen, now. Just not officially. I have the silver crystal in my body, therefore I'm in charge." She giggled a little, her hand absently wandering the definition of his thighs. "I can be a bitch and order you to marry me, you know. Don't make me pull rank on your ass."

"I only take orders from the House of Vegeta," he countered. "You know that."

"You're on my planet, Kakarot," she pointed out, extremely amused by the combination of the painkillers and the way his beast was obviously disagreeing with him; she knew that it controlled his tail, and that red, fluffy appendage was idly stroking over her curls.

"Then I'll go home."

"Nope. I'll deny you access to all transport. Good luck finding anyone that will defy me," she chuckled.

"Our children wouldn't be legitimate."

"The hell they wouldn't; I'm the queen. They'll be legitimate if I say they are. Just because Broly was one of Vegeta's royal cousins didn't make him any damned better than you; you were still stronger than him and he was a jackass. You outclass him in every way, _r'sha_."

"Don't call me that," he whispered sadly. "It won't happen, Usagi."

She realized that he was dead serious and immediately slipped away from him, rolling over to face the wall. "Then I'll be damned if I'll let you just use me for the burning. Get out of my room, Kakarot."

"I'm not leaving your side until you're healed," he said firmly. "I'm not staying just because of the burning, Majesty, and you can't make me leave. And if you call your brother," he added seriously, "he'll regret stepping foot in this room."

"Fine. Then sleep on the nightguard cot," she ordered, pointing blindly behind her to the lumpy thing in the corner. Usagi knew what an insult to him that was; her bed was more than big enough to share and she never made her nightguards sleep on that thing. She was caught between triumph and an overwhelming urge to cry when she felt his warmth retreat from her side and she heard him settle onto the cot. The second impulse won out but she managed to stay silent as she cried herself to sleep.

###########################

Seeing Kakarot crashed out on what the nightguards had dubbed the "doghouse cot," Vegeta sputtered silently as he also smelled a hint of salt around his sister. That could only mean she'd cried because Kakarot had done something beyond idiotic, and had in turn gotten himself sent to nightguard purgatory. "Kakarot, get up," Vegeta ordered under his breath, more than quiet enough not to wake his little sister.

The red-furred Saiyan snarled silently at the sight of another male in the room, but when Vegeta flared his ki wildly in an order to get his fucking ass out of bed and outside that very moment for a serious talk, he obliged with a growl of annoyance. "What?" He snapped once they were down the hall.

"She's injured, you're burning, and you _still _managed to piss her off, Kakarot!? What in the hell is _wrong with you_!? I should have been _mildly_ annoyed with you about walking in to find a naked warrior curled up around my equally naked sister, but instead I find you in the doghouse, fully clothed, with the scent of my sister's tears hanging in the air! Are you just _**socially retarded**_!? _**Or do you just like fucking with Usagi's heart**_!?"

"She doesn't know what she's getting into, Vegeta. She's still a child," Kakarot replied stubbornly.

"Kakarot… it's a dark fucking day when I say something like this, so listen up. Your beast has more fucking sense than you do, so just let him out, stop overthinking everything, and _shut the fuck up_. And you know what? My sister has more maturity in her than you'll ever have, especially when it comes to the idea of being mated to you. There comes a time when a warrior needs to just accept defeat, and that's usually when he feels the pull for someone he didn't expect to feel it for at all. You think for a fucking minute that I thought I'd feel it for Ami?" He snorted in amusement. "The woman's so quietly stubborn that it's killing me… she won't even humor me by arguing," Vegeta chuckled.

"Now," the crown prince said, right back to being serious, "you're going to go back in there, strip down, and climb in the bed with her. And you're going to bite her, or I'm going to call your son and tell him what an idiot you're being."

"And just what would Gohan do about it?"

Vegeta just grinned evilly up at the taller Saiyan and shook his head. "He'd tell his mate, that's what he'd do. And I'm pretty sure that Rei would have a few things to say about the way you're treating her best friend. After she'd called Haruka and Makoto, of course."

Kakarot blinked at that in surprise and finally growled. "You wouldn't."

"Oh… I _would_. Now, Kakarot… are you going to be a good little soldier, or am I going to have to make your life… _difficult_?"

"I hate you so much right now," he grumbled as he turned on his heel and marched back in the room, catching the door before it could slam loudly and wake the princess. Kakarot was relieved to find her still sleeping, but inwardly groaned at the sight of the covers kicked halfway off of her, covering only her legs. She was a complete vision in the nude with her golden hair pooling around her like an ankle-length halo, and he felt his beast taking over again as his temperature rose and the burning returned in full force. "Fuuuuck," he groaned, unable to control his body as he strode over to the bed, shed his pants, and climbed in next to her. "Usa…"

She opened her eyes groggily at the sound of her name, sounding like a whine coming out of his mouth, and sighed at the sensation of his tail wrapping around her upper thigh to draw her flush against him. He was burning up, and she didn't even have to look down to know that what she was feeling was not just morning wood. "I already told you, Kakarot. Other cot," she said stiffly, her voice not betraying how badly she wanted to tell him to just take her and make her his. But no, she had more self-respect than that. Usagi would not just be used for the burning and she wouldn't beg; for her it would be all or nothing, and she'd already made her desire for him more than clear.

Usagi shivered at the sensation of his lips ghosting over her shoulder blade before following up with a flick of his tongue, and she tried to swallow a moan when he moved to the back of her neck. She failed, the noise coming out soft and strangled as his tail slipped between her legs and began to part her folds while his hands wandered and teased her breasts. "Kakarot?"

The sound of her so breathless and needy made him purr happily. "Hm?"

"Are you in control… or is it your beast again?" Usagi bit down on her lip when his tail began to rub her firmly in a spot that made her body begin to sing, but when she reached back to give him pleasure as well, she was surprised to feel him shake his head and deny her access.

"I was a poor mate to you last night, _r'sha_. I didn't return the favor. But now that _I'm_ in control again, I'm going to make come until you're stupid and I'm going to mark you as mine. No," he whispered sexily in her ear when she tried to touch him again. "After I mark you, princess. We don't want that peskier side of me taking control before I've made you mine."

"But… but Kakarot, I—" She was cut off by her own soft moan when he growled in response and bit her shoulder just hard enough to leave a bruise, the sound mixing in with that rich, seductive purr, letting her know just who was in charge. Usagi suddenly bucked a little when he continued to pay attention to her shoulder, never ceasing that sweet friction between her legs that was causing a fire to erupt in her belly.

"Tell me you're mine, princess. Let me hear it and I'll finally make it true."

She didn't have any doubts about wanting to be his mate, but if she had, the firm nip to her shoulder would have silenced them immediately. "Please, Kakarot," she whimpered. "Please do it… I'm yours… I love you…"

Kakarot's beast growled in a display of dominance as his jaw tightened, his teeth finally puncturing the flawless skin of her shoulder, her blood filling his mouth and her thoughts flooding his own. He groaned and nearly came with her as her climax crashed through the new bond and she stiffened in his arms, crying out in surprise and ecstasy at the feeling of her first pleasure with a man. "Mmm… so good, princess. I'd say that it's now my turn, but I'm enjoying the fact that I'm in control for once. I think we'll wait to get me off," he purred.

Usagi was still trembling from the aftermath as he turned her and wrapped one quivering thigh around his waist, grinding his arousal into her hip. "I think I like it when your beast is in control, too," she whispered groggily. "At least then you're not making me cry," she added bitterly.

"Hm… you're still mad at me." He sighed a little at that, followed by a lick to her still-bleeding shoulder. "You're mine now, princess. And I love you, too," he breathed before he gently claimed her mouth, his tongue seeking hers out and tangling with it as his hands fisted in her hair.

Kakarot growled at himself for forgetting about her head when she winced and tensed against him, and he immediately stopped to check the wound. "Sorry, _r'sha_. You need to hurry up with this healing bullshit," he chuckled.

"Working on it," she muttered, clamping down on a protest when he slid out of the bed; she could hear him thinking about making her a painkiller, and Usagi couldn't help but marvel at the feeling of the half-bond. "So… when the burning's over…?"

"I wouldn't worry about it, princess," he chortled. "I've bitten you. You're mine. It's as simple as that. Here, drink this," he said as he helped her sit up. When she sputtered a little he followed her line of sight and grinned down at his own erection. "Yeah, I imagine it's a bit daunting at first." He leaned in to flick his tongue over her earlobe, his voice dropping to a whisper. "But I swear you'll love every inch of me moving inside of you once the initial pain's out of the way."

"Um… I'm sure I won't be complaining," she managed shyly as she tried to fix her gaze on something else. She'd heard stories about how all Saiyan warriors were hung like horses, but she had never quite believed it until last night and now wondered how in the hell someone Hotaru's size was going to handle be mated to Nappa.

"Very carefully!" Kakarot laughed. "I imagine he'll have to be very gentle with the poor girl; I've seen Nappa in the showers after training and his size scares all of us. We all congregate on one side of the shower room and try to stay far, far away from that thing." His beast continued to chuckle when his mate giggled, simply enjoying the sound and the feeling of her humor in his mind. "Those pain meds kicking in yet, _r'sha_?"

"A little." She opened her mouth to say something else, but the warm, calming sensation of his tail swishing around, spreading his scent, and his ki filling her made her simply sag in his arms and sigh happily. _Mmm… that's better than the painkillers…_

_ Good to hear, princess. Take a nap for me. I'll be here when you wake. _

##################################

"How is Usagi?"

Vegeta blinked in surprise to hear Ami actually speaking to him; she'd been nothing but silent and aloof during the last two days and hadn't even given him the time of day. Literally. He'd actually asked for it and she'd ignored him. "Recovering. Kakarot's with her now… I'll admit that I'm worried about that, though." He inwardly grinned when she set down whatever it was she was working on and turned to meet his eyes. Good, he'd finally gotten her attention! "Kakarot's fighting the inevitable and he's sure to break her heart again if he doesn't get his shit together."

"Oh. But… he felt the pull for her. Shouldn't that just solve everything?"

Vegeta snorted and rolled his eyes at that. "I felt the pull for _you_ and it sure as hell hasn't solved a damn thing, woman." He caught sight of her bright blush before she spun around and hurriedly began to fiddle with whatever it was she'd been working on, her hands trembling so badly that she dropped a beaker.

The prince caught it smoothly and set it back down beside her as he wrapped his tail around her waist and closed the gap to draw in her scent. "Why are you ignoring me, Ami? And why in the gods' names are you afraid of me? I'm not going to hurt you."

"I know you won't," she whispered nervously, going still as a statue the moment she felt his lips on the back of her neck. "But Vegeta… I'm simply not wife material, and I don't want to get married. Or mate. Or anything. I just want to work in my lab; it makes me happy."

"You can't be happy with a man added into the equation?" He asked curiously. "Besides, Ami… it's not like I have to claim you right away. I'm not such an ass that I would mind courting you for a while. If you're really that bothered by it, we should give you time to get used to the idea." Vegeta smiled into her hair and gave her a peck on the cheek from behind before releasing her. "Usagi suggested that I play you in chess."

Ami turned at that and studied him suspiciously. "You actually play? I thought you just fought and sparred and trained all the time."

"All work and no play makes Vegeta a very dull boy," he chuckled as he took a seat at the little table in the lab. "And for the record, Ami? _No one_ has beaten me in chess. Not even Father."

The princess of Mercury removed her lab gloves and produced a chess set from her subspace, regarding him seriously as she sat down across from him. "Well, Your Highness… get ready to get your ass whooped for the first time."

**Hm… stuck on what should happen in the next chapter… I'm sure my betas will suggest something, lol.**


	5. Chapter 5

**I'M BACK BITCHES! (ahem, for anyone that watches TFS DBZA) And I said it wasn't finished, ladies and gentlemen, and I meant it! Now… to run to the store and buy enough smokes to last through the raid of pitchforks and torches on my home. Thank the gods that only one of you know where I live!**

Ami smiled in quiet triumph as she leaned back in her chair and pushed her queen into position. "Mate."

That vein in Vegeta's forehead was throbbing as he studied the board, his arms folded over his chest as he ground his teeth. "That is NOT. MATE."

"Oh, it is. I assure you," Ami chuckled, sliding out of her chair to return to her work.

"Oh hell no!" Vegeta snapped, using his Saiyan speed to cut her off before pointing back to the table. "Sit your ass down. I demand a rematch this instant."

"Vegeta," Ami sighed, her lips still twitching up in a satisfied smirk. "May I remind you that I have things to do… and that I've already given you three rematches?"

"I'll play you for…" Vegeta screwed up his face, his brows knitting together as he tried to think of something worthwhile. "Hell, I don't know. What _**do**_ you want?"

"I don't know… um… tell you what. I'll play you in a game while I think it over, and the second game can be the one we bet on. What do you want?"

Vegeta grinned at that and simply waggled his eyebrows in response, followed by a laugh when she blushed and sputtered a 'no.' "Well… now I know whose mind is in the gutter," he teased. "I just wanted a kiss."

"Oh." Ami's brows knit in thought and she shook her head. "Sorry… I just thought…"

"Oh, I know very well what you thought, woman. And I'll be more than happy to oblige in whipping your ass if that's what we're betting on. Hell, I'd bet on clothing—no. Wait. Strip chess. A piece of clothing per lost piece on the board. Hmm… pawns don't count. Just the back row." Vegeta looked up to find her blushing even brighter, but there was a glint in her eyes as she studied the board, herself, and then him. "Counting articles of clothes?"

"Actually, yes," she admitted.

Already knowing where she was headed with her thoughts, Vegeta held up a hand to silence her before she spoke. "I'm wearing training shorts beneath the training gi and the armor."

"Oh. That's fair, then." Ami quickly began to reset her pieces on her side of the board while Vegeta just gaped in astonishment.

"You're seriously taking this bet?"

"Mmhmm," she replied evenly. "I figure it'll shut you up and I can go back to work."

"That's cold, Ami. And coming from me, that's pretty bad," Vegeta replied flatly. "Sweeten the deal. With every lost piece of clothing, you have to answer a question honestly. Nothing is taboo."

"Deal," she said absently, sitting back and waiting patiently for him to put his pieces into place. "It doesn't matter… since you're going to lose, Vegeta. And if we're being frankly honest, I have several questions for you, anyway… ones that I normally would never get an answer to."

Really. Well, this was about to get very, very interesting. And why in the hell had she been ignoring him for the last week, rather than asking her stupid little questions!? If she had, Vegeta could have been well on his way to making her his mate! "You won last," he grunted as he sat back, all of his pieces in place. "Your move."

Ami nodded and studied him for a long moment before moving a pawn; was he upset with her? "What in the hell gives you the right, Vegeta?"

"Excuse me?" He asked in surprise, moving one of his pieces as well.

Ami frowned and shook her head as they set up what was to be his usual defense; she'd only ripped it to tissue paper every time he'd played her. "To be angry with me… about _anything_?"

"You haven't taken a piece of mine, woman… but I'll answer this one for free. I'm mad because you've ignored me all week, even after Usa told you I'd felt the pull for you. Like I said, I'll court you if you wish, but I don't understand why you're fighting the inevitable." The way her jaw hardened made him smirk; it was his turn, and he claimed a rook with ease, one that he'd ignored every game so far. Ami was fairly predictable now that he'd played her with this exact same set-up several times. "So…" He set the rook to the side and his smug expression reached his glittering onyx eyes. "…why are _you_ mad at _me_? And you'd better be thorough and honest with your answer," he added softly.

Ami looked away and huffed; she'd planned this damned conversation over and over in her head, but everything that suddenly came to mind wasn't at all what she'd premeditated. "I've been watching you since I was fifteen," she finally muttered, "and you never so much as looked at me, Vegeta." Her blue eyes met his then and she sighed. "It hurt, Vegeta. That's why I'm mad at you."

The hint of desire mixed in with the sadness in her eyes made the prince flinch, but he nodded and his hand actually slid across the table to squeeze hers gently. "Have you seen me look at another woman like I've been looking at you, Ami?" She shook her head and he chuckled at that; so she _had_ been paying attention. "I was waiting for the pull; I don't deserve less than that with a potential mate." He stopped at that, knowing exactly what her next question would be now that he'd obviously answered several for her. He'd explained enough and he wanted her to work a little for answers; after all, that was the fun in the game, right? "Now off with the shoes. Both of them; we're going to get nowhere if it's only one sock or shoe at a time."

A little surprised that he hadn't immediately asked for her lab coat, Ami did as he asked and slid them off, pushing them to the side of the table with her feet. She pondered his words as they exchanged pawns and he castled his king—just as she'd expected him to do. Other than taking her rook, his moves were identical to their previous games. She hesitated when the very next move left a black knight open, but after a moment of contemplative thought, she took it as she had during the other matches. "Vegeta, are you a virgin?" She blurted out.

"Yes. But it doesn't mean I haven't studied the subject of sex thoroughly," he replied smoothly. "I like the thought of being prepared to properly take my mate the first time." Vegeta waited patiently as she looked him up and down, clearly inspecting his clothing and what she wanted him to remove first. "Well?" He asked after a full minute.

"Gloves," she whispered, unable to help licking her lips at the prospect of seeing his hands bared; he always wore those damned things, and she'd even wondered if he wore them in his sleep. Ami watched him lift a single eyebrow, but instead of simply taking them off, he raised a hand to his mouth, bit down on the cloth over his middle finger, and slowly drew it from his skin.

Vegeta was genuinely surprised by her first request, but he took his time, his eyes never leaving her face as he turned the simple act of removing both gloves into something slow and blatantly sexual. He handed them over once his left hand was bare, having had the cloth peeled away from it with his teeth, just as the right had. "All yours, woman," he purred softly, making it a point to brush a bare palm over her hand as she accepted them. "The first of many courting gifts, if you'll allow me to give them."

Oh, she was definitely keeping this particular courting gift; she'd likely sleep with the damned things as she thought about him at night and imagined those callouses roaming her breasts as she touched herself in the dark.

Apparently her expression had given her thoughts away, and she blushed when his chest rumbled in a quiet purr. "Um… uh… your move," she said quickly, shoving the gloves into her lab coat pocket.

"Why, yes it is," he replied with a throaty note to his voice, and he immediately captured the bishop she'd used to take his knight, something he'd itched to do during every match, but had left alone. "I can smell your arousal, Ami… and I must admit that I'm pretty pleased by the fact that this is turning you on. So… tell me… Hm…" Vegeta furrowed his brow as he thought of a suitable question; she clearly wanted him, so there was no point in asking if she did. Besides, he was _trying_ to be a gentleman… at least for the time being. But he'd been dying to know… it's not like she'd been lacking for suitors…

"Nothing's taboo, Vegeta. As you said," Ami assured him when he blushed slightly and was clearly unnerved by something.

"You—are you-? Never mind," he sputtered. "It doesn't matter anyway. Off with the socks. Your move."

Pleased with his sudden lack of temerity, Ami smiled, removed her stockings, but didn't move a piece. Instead, she waited to catch his eye and nodded a little. "Yes, Vegeta. I'm a virgin, too. Though… I'm much the same as you. I've done quite a bit of reading on the subject. I've been kissed, that's it." The troubled look in his eyes made her smile falter. "…but you haven't been…? Well… um…" The mere thought of pressing her lips to his, of being the first one to ever give him something that simple… Ami had to admit that it was more than just a turn on, and she was longing to come around the table and find out if he tasted as good as he smelled. Flustered, she moved a piece without thinking about it and flinched once she realized that she'd made a huge mistake.

Vegeta just stared at the board, then back up at her, then back down. "I'm not ready for this game to be over," he said flatly. He took hold of his queen and heard her gasp as he moved to take one of her knights instead of putting her check… one that would lead to a checkmate in less than three moves. "I know you're the quiet type, woman. But why in the hell didn't you approach me when you were sixteen? I would have felt the pull then and we could have already been mated," he said suddenly.

"Because soon after I turned sixteen, Hotaru did as well. You know as well as I that he's been chasing her since then, and he asked me to help him out a few weeks after he'd felt the pull for her. He's been spending a lot of time with her in the lab, but…" Ami's lips twitched up a little and she sighed wistfully. "…I suspect that he's managed to make his affections known. They've both disappeared a few times on me during the last week or so, and I don't think it has anything to do with lab work."

"Heh. Good for him," Vegeta said sincerely. "The full Earth probably has something to do with it. Thank the gods it doesn't happen often. Hopefully none of my men will look up on accident when the eclipse starts." He studied her clothing then and licked his lips slowly, no longer able to resist the idea of—"The shirt," he purred.

Ami blinked at that and looked down. "But… you don't want the coat…?"

"No, I don't. I want the shirt. The idea of you eventually wearing nothing beneath it has been a fantasy of mine for some time, woman. Just as yours has been seeing me without my gloves on… something no woman has seen except for family."

Ami's only reply to that was to button her coat and slowly draw her arms inside of it to strip off her shirt—and like when he'd taken off his gloves, she turned it into some sort of striptease, her eyes never leaving his face as that dark gaze watched her with desire. She finally put her arms back through the short sleeves once her shirt was only hanging around her neck and drew it over her head before setting it to the side. But she didn't stop there; Ami surprised herself by gradually unbuttoning the coat, completely drawn in by the way he was watching her, every muscle in his body rigid with the obvious effort he was making to fight his inner beast.

"Stop," he croaked suddenly.

The princess of Mercury caressed the last button with the tip of a single blue nail and blushed at how impossibly dark his eyes had become, the way his tail was swishing around behind him almost violently. "It was unbuttoned before," she replied.

"Woman, I pray to every god in the universe that you have no clue what you're doing to me right now… but if that last button goes, I'm coming over this table and taking you on your lab bench, your virginity and my promise to court you be damned."

She came to her senses then and had the courtesy to blush; damn it, it was his tail pheromones doing this to her, right!? Ami looked at the board and swiftly moved her king to a much safer position before gesturing for him to take his turn, mulling over how she's been thinking of parting the coat just enough to bare a single breast to him, how she'd been wondering what kind of reaction she'd get once he saw her naked. She came out of her reverie when he grunted, and she realized she'd been staring into space for a good while.

"Your turn."

"Oh, um… sorry." She took a pawn and watched as he immediately did the same, leaving an opening for her to take a rook. He didn't _want _her to take it, did he? His eyes said that he did, and Ami hesitantly took the offered piece with her remaining bishop, licking her lips as she pointed at his armor, not trusting her voice at the moment.

Vegeta raised it over his head and set it to the side with little fanfare, but didn't move when she gestured to the board. "What, woman? No question? Nothing's taboo, as you reminded me earlier."

Damn it, it was just a question. But if she asked it, it would be giving voice to what he probably knew already: she wanted him… very, very much. "Just ask me, Ami," Vegeta urged her, his voice almost gentle.

"If…" Ok, fuck it. She was a princess of Mercury, not some terrified little virgin! Ok, she was a virgin, but she surely had no reason to be so terrified of a man! "If I kissed you… would you be able to stop this close to the Earth's eclipse?"

"I have almost as much control over my beast as Raditz does," he answered simply. "If you ask me to, yes. I could stop." Vegeta hadn't been sure if it was a rhetorical question, but when she immediately came around the table and just looked down at him nervously, his tail yanked her into his lap with a mind of its own. "Sure about this?" He whispered, his hands trembling as they slid up the back of the bunched-up coat to caress her bare skin for the first time.

"Not your turn to ask a question," she replied just as softly, leaning in just enough to feel his breath ghosting over her mouth, her nose brushing over his. She could feel the way he was shaking slightly and it gave her courage to know that the prince was just as nervous as she was, but she wasn't as nervous about simply kissing him as she was about fucking up his very first one.

As he felt a soft, feminine hand slide up his chest, his neck, then rest upon his cheek, Vegeta's eyes slipped shut as he fought for air and waited, wondering if he really could control his beast. Gods, she felt so warm and _right_, and it was taking every ounce of his willpower not to simply close the gap between them and take what his inner Saiyan was screaming was rightfully his. "Ami…"

The sound of her name uttered in total surrender made her dip forward before she could stop herself, and before she knew it she could feel and hear him groaning against her lips as she pressed them to his. She was amazed that he was barely returning it, clearly giving her control as he sat still for her; the only movement of his body was that of his hands, which were still caressing the flesh of her back, the callouses scraping deliciously over her soft skin. It was her turn to moan softly as he opened at the very first flick of her tongue, and she was instantly massaging his with her own, pressing tightly to him as she explored his abs with one hand and ran her other through his hair.

But still, he was only barely returning the kiss, and Ami drew back just enough to speak when she began to grow frustrated. She'd expected hard, ruthless, demanding… just as he was whenever she'd watched him sparring—and on a couple occasions, actually fighting—and she'd fantasized about how downright brutally he might kiss her, how his hands would pull and tear at her clothing as he commanded her complete submission to him. "Am I… doing it wrong, Vegeta?"

Her self-consciousness made him purr seductively as he shook his head slowly, followed by a nip to her lower lip. "Usagi told me to be nice," he growled, "and that's what I'm trying very hard to do right now." Something about her eyes and the set of her jaw told him that she didn't _want_ nice, and Vegeta lifted a single questioning brow as he slid a hand around and up to cup a perfect, soft breast. "Tell me what you want, woman."

"The real you," she murmured hesitantly, unable to stop herself from arching into his bare palm as he slowly thumbed an already aroused nipple. So, this is what it felt like for him to touch her. Dear gods, it felt fucking _amazing_!

"Are you totally sure about that, Ami?" He asked hoarsely; his beast was already licking its chops at the prospect of being let off the chain a little, and Vegeta had to admit that the idea of turning it loose completely was more than just tempting. "I may not be able to stop if I do."

Some tiny sense of self-preservation and pride made her pull back and shake her head. "No, you're right. I'm sorry," she said quickly as she removed herself from his lap and went back to her chair. "I shouldn't have done that." She stared at the board as she tried to remember who in the hell's move it was, and blushed when he took one of her pawns. "Oh, it was yours," she muttered absently.

"Good to know I had that much of an effect on you without even doing anything," he chuckled, waving at the board. "Well?"

Ami pondered her next move and chewed on her lower lip; she was sure he'd done it on purpose this time. By taking that pawn, he'd left his other knight wide open. _Fuck it_, she thought as she captured it. "Boots."

Vegeta toed them off and set them to the side. "I didn't wear socks today, by the way. I was in a hurry to get down here and I couldn't find any," he informed her, waggling his eyebrows in a clear message that the next thing to go would be his spandex gi.

"Oh," she squeaked. "So… um…" She couldn't think of anything at first, then remembered his words after she'd broken the kiss. "Wait. Usagi told you to be nice to me? So you're not doing this because you—"

Vegeta cut her off with a swift motion of his hand. "She suggested that I be nice, woman. She didn't order me to. I'm doing it because she was right; if you're to be my mate, then you're allowed to…" He stopped then and grunted, his face flushing slightly. "…to see the real me. Behind what everyone else sees, except for family and Kakarot."

"So this isn't the real you?"

"You only get one question," he replied flatly as he took a pawn. He inwardly sputtered at the knowing smile gracing her lips as they began to chase each other around the board, neither of them giving the other an inch as they both kept their thoughts to themselves for the time being. Finally, Vegeta left an opening and wasn't surprised when she took it without a bit of hesitation.

"So, what's the real you?"

"It's not an answer I can give, woman," he sighed, extremely uneasy about this line of questioning. But damn it, the betting had been his idea. "It's something that I'll only be able to show you a little at a time as I get comfortable with the notion."

It was a non-answer, but Ami let it go and twirled a blue fingernail at his gi, surprised at her own anticipation of seeing it gone. Her eyes grew impossibly wide as he stood and moved to the side of the table, every motion of his body screaming seduction as he slowly peeled the fabric from his skin… using only his tail.

Clad only in his training shorts, Vegeta smirked as he stepped out of the spandex and extended it to her, still only using that length of silky dark-brown fur. "Ok. My move."

Still in a practically drooling mess from witnessing that unbelievably sexy striptease, Ami just nodded stupidly, her mouth hanging open as he set the gi in her lap. "Makes me wish I had some single credit bills." She blushed when she realized that she'd spoken aloud, and hurriedly looked away when he laughed loudly, the sound genuine and extremely pleasing.

His tail swishing behind him just as enticingly as possible, Vegeta turned and took several lazy steps back to his chair, feeling her eyes on his ass before he sat down. "Hm. My move." And funny enough, he could totally put her in check, but… Vegeta shook his head and _really _studied the board for once as he formulated a battleplan in his mind, one that would be extremely easy to execute.

He knew her strategies well enough now to anticipate her moves should he make the ones he was planning on, and he would be sure to manipulate this outcome properly. He ignored two pawns that he could easily capture and instead exchanged moves with her a couple times before taking her queen. "I want the shorts. Hope you're wearing panties," he purred darkly. Vegeta was impressed as she returned his little confidant smirk and stood up, using her fingertips to push her lab coat to the side just below the single fastened button, exposing her shorts as she slowly unzipped them.

Ami didn't falter as she watched him watching her and flicked the button open to show her creamy lower belly and just a hint of blue lace beneath it. "These shorts?" She asked, a little amazed at her own transformation from nervous little doctor into some wanton, horny woman. Damned tail pheromones. That was the only explanation for her behavior, but she was strangely ok with it for the moment. Though her undying embarrassment would likely come later.

"Unless you're hiding another pair under the table, woman… I suggest you show me what kind of underwear you're wearing," Vegeta whispered huskily, his cock standing at attention just out of her view.

Ami considered teasing him a little, suggesting that he remove them for her, but she knew without a doubt that if he touched her again she'd be flat on her back somewhere and the rest of her clothing would be in tatters. So she wiggled her hips a little and the denim fell smoothly to the floor. Stepping out of it with one foot, she used the other to drop the article of clothing in his lap… and turned to her chair, giving him a brief glimpse of her perfect, bare ass just as she lowered the lab coat back into place. "Question?"

"Why are you wearing a thong?" Vegeta blurted out, still staring at her with naked lust as his cock tented not only his shorts, but the ones she'd just dropped in his lap. He thought he'd pegged Ami pretty well at that point, but she had never seemed like the thong type. Maybe white cotton panties or even functional boy shorts, but a thong?

He snapped to attention when she muttered something and looked away, her face beet red at what could have only been an embarrassing admission. "I didn't catch that, woman. What did you say?"

Her eyes widening at the thought of saying it out loud again, Ami swallowed hard. "I said, um… that I kind of… um… wanted to feel sexy… um… for you. Since I knew you would be here," she finished with a whisper. The way his eyebrows hit his hairline made her shrug one shoulder. "I normally wear just regular cotton underwear… boy shorts if I'm working out. I've never worn these before," she confessed.

"I love it when I'm right," Vegeta chuckled. "About what type of undies you wear," he explained. "And Ami, you are very, _very_…" He shook his head in wonder and sighed. "_**Very**_ sexy. And I'd be more than happy to prove it by peeling that thing off with my tail," he added as said appendage slid under the table and stroked behind her knee.

Ami yelped at that and jerked back, but Vegeta's tail caught the leg of her chair before it toppled over and she got familiar with the floor of her lab. Tugging it back onto all four legs, Vegeta grinned and swept the fur over her leg once more before pulling it back. "Sorry about that, I didn't mean to make you nearly break your neck. Next time I'll suggest using my teeth."

He grinned when she giggled at that and moved without thinking, just as he knew she would… and played right into his greedy little hands by capturing his bishop. "Well… I guess there's only one item remaining, _k'sha_. Tell me… shall I take it off under the table to spare you going blind from the glory of the royal cock? Or would you like a full view?" He purred.

**Ahem… SeleneA accidentally mentioned something about 'please don't tell me you're going to cut it off there' and I decided to do it just to fuck with her… since she likes to tease me about updating fics that I haven't touched in a while. So there yall go! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA… yeah, now have a nice, long three months until I get around to posting again! Oh, and btw? The next chapter is going to be hard M. And hard Vegeta. But you knew that already.**


	6. Chapter 6

**And we are now rated M, people! Woooo! R&R!**

_He grinned when she giggled at that and moved without thinking, just as he knew she would… and played right into his greedy little hands by capturing his bishop. "Well… I guess there's only one item remaining, k'sha. Tell me… shall I take it off under the table to spare you going blind from the glory of the royal cock? Or would you like a full view?" He purred._

##############################

Ami's utter silence at his question made him smile… a slow, genuine smile as he slipped out of his chair and approached her as if he were on the hunt. "Or would you like to do the honors, my mate?" He pulled back a little, his smile only growing wider when it dawned on him that he was very, very hard and his arousal was very, _very_ close to her face at that angle. "Wasn't trying to choke you with it… yet," He assured her as he took one step back to give her some breathing room. "So? How do you want them, woman?"

"On the floor," she said before she could stop herself, suddenly steeling her nerves and rising to the challenge, her hand creeping up to grasp his waistband at the hip. It was like her raging hormones had totally taken over as her hand moved with a mind of its own, her eyes never leaving his as she slid the snugly fitting cloth down, her fingers whispering over the outside of his thigh.

Vegeta licked his lips as the princess of Mercury kept her gaze locked with his own and he felt her nails caressing his skin, and he wondered if she had a single fucking clue how damned close she was to being pinned to the floor. She finally let them go and they fell to pool around his ankles, but Vegeta didn't move as he used his tail to make his next move, claiming the queen that she'd left wide open by taking his bishop. And her king was officially pinned in place. "Checkmate."

Ami suddenly couldn't speak as she trembled and risked glancing down; she nearly moaned aloud at the sight of him, hard, ready and—she hoped—very anxious to get her off. _Dear gods… I'm actually going to do this, _she whispered to herself, standing up and only an inch from his erection as he leaned over her. "Which one?"

"Lady's choice." He glanced at the board for a moment and knocked over her king for good measure, then patiently waited for her to decide whether she wanted to take off the lab coat or be totally nude beneath it. Either choice would please him immensely. He expected her to remove something, but he didn't expect her to step forward and gradually press against him, trapping his cock between them as she took his hand in hers and brought it to the button on her coat. "You do remember what I said about this button, right?" He asked shakily.

"Something about introducing my ass to my lab bench?" She replied tartly, trying to seem brave about the prospect of taking him to her bed. It was going to happen, of that she was sure, so she might as well not fret about the inevitable. "And don't tell me that was your one question."

"No…" He slid the button out of its hole then, followed by his hands parting the cloth and pushing it off of her shoulders and to the floor. Vegeta found himself yanking hard on his beast's leash as she pressed those perfect, warm breasts to the scarred flesh of his chest, and he nipped at her lower lip as a growl started in his throat. "Top or bottom?"

Ami's reply was to bring his hand to her underwear and hook his fingers into the blue lace at her hip.

"I didn't win this," he said simply. "Now answer the question."

"Consider it a courting gift," she breathed against his lips as she leaned up, wondering just how in the hell he'd been planning on having sex with her if her thong had been in the way. "Bottom."

Vegeta hesitated a moment, stopping just short of kissing her, his grip tight on her hips. "You're sure about this?"

"Vegeta… total honesty… I've wanted this for years." Ami moaned the moment his mouth crashed into hers and it was everything she'd dreamed of: hard, demanding, brutal and extremely Saiyan, but his hands were almost gentle as they touched and explored her, then lifted her against him to carry her to the bed she kept in the back room.

She normally only used the double bed for when she was working around the clock, but the room was clean and the bed made—which Vegeta quickly remedied before lying her down and settling on top of her, his hands lighting her on fire as they explored her once more and he devoured her mouth.

He simply couldn't stop kissing her—she was arguably the best thing he'd ever tasted, and he was already about to explode just from that much contact. But Vegeta was positive that he wouldn't have a problem getting hard again immediately, so when he felt a soft hand whisper over his aching flesh, he merely groaned and thrust upwards into her palm as his own fingers sought her warmth.

Ami cried out softly, arching into him the moment he stroked her clit, trembling with need as he proceeded to stroke her almost as insistently as he did in her fantasies. "Vegeta… going to—" She moaned into his mouth when he cut her off with another kiss, growling in the back of his throat as he purred for his mate and erupted in her hand. She wasn't far behind him, tightening around the pair of fingers that were stretching her and massaging her barrier in preparation for the moment he took her.

That moment was at hand; Vegeta was immediately rock hard again and withdrawing his fingers, rocking his hips into her once for permission, waiting for her to clutch at him and arch hers in return before he pressed into her folds. He finally broke the long, passionate kiss then, and gazed down at her with fire and longing in his eyes. "I'll try to hurt you as little as possible…" He pressed his lips to the sigil on her forehead before speaking again. "…_r'sha_."

"I love you," she whispered up at him, finally letting it show in her eyes as she gripped his hips and flexed around the thick head of his arousal.

"I'll still court you," he added, his voice as gentle as he'd ever heard it as he bent his head to her shoulder and nipped at her skin, still waiting for her to protest, amazed that his beast was letting him wait while she relaxed beneath him. "Ready?"

Ami's reply came in the form of fluffing her fingers through the silky fur of his tail just as she bit down on his shoulder. His raised ki was the only thing that kept her from breaking the skin and Vegeta growled loudly in response, driving forward and filling her with a few short thrusts as she clung to him tightly and ordered him not to stop before he was locked inside of her.

Vegeta nipped at Ami's shoulder once more, followed by a slow and tender kiss that was totally unlike the kisses they'd shared since the end of the chess game, his hands gently roaming her trembling body. "Sorry," he breathed over her lips as he broke the kiss.

"It's ok, _r'sha_… just bite me. It'll help with the pain." Which, truth be told, was pretty intense despite how wet she'd been for him. Vegeta wasn't an enormous man by Saiyan definition, but he was a hell of a lot bigger than any male patient Ami had encountered in her solar system. At least he wasn't as big as Nappa, she mused silently; she'd had the unfortunate chance to walk in on him showering one day in the lab and she'd nearly choked on it from across the room.

Vegeta did as she asked immediately, his eyes slipping shut as he growled, purred and nearly came a second time just from the taste of her blood in his mouth, sinking his canines deeper when she moaned his name and dug her nails into his lower back.

"I need you, Vegeta," Ami whimpered as her body screamed for completion in reaction to his bite; she was moving restlessly beneath him, clutching at his back as her mouth pressed to his shoulder and she raked her teeth over the flesh. "_Please_."

"Bite me when you're coming," he ordered gruffly as he withdrew and thrust back into her slowly. Her gasp and the sensation of her pleasure through the bond assured him that he wasn't hurting her, but he bent down to suck at her mark anyways as he set up a slow and easy rhythm. _Do I live up to your fantasies, woman?_

_You so did not look into my head, _she whimpered in reply as she felt herself already rising towards heaven when he moved a little harder.

"That wasn't the question," he murmured against her shoulder.

"Yes," she gasped as he drove into her just a tad bit harder. "You blew them out of the water, Vegeta… oh gods… right there, _yes_…"

"Good answer, _r'sha_," he replied smugly as he felt her crest and clamp down around him like a vice. "Damn it, woman… so fucking _tight_…mmm… come for me again before I lose it, woman…"

"Close," she admitted breathlessly, yanking him back down to her for a hot, long kiss before she began to run her lips up and down his throat, making his eyes roll back as he fought for air. "I want you to come for me, too, Geta…" Ami nipped at his shoulder then and moved her hips in time with his, moaning softly as she felt him quicken and swell inside of her, his voice rising up like a tidal wave as he panted for air. She bit down as hard as she could just as she orgasmed, taking her prince with her, her nails digging into his back and her heels into his ass as she arched, yelled and sucked on the bite.

Vegeta sagged in exhaustion even as her body was still milking him dry, every muscle trembling in ecstasy, his voice low and soft in her ear as he purred out words of love in Saiyan. And try as he might, he couldn't move an inch to pleasure her further until she finally removed her mouth from his mating mark and she giggled at his reaction. "Mmm… I swear, woman… I wish I'd made eye contact with you years ago…"

Tracing his face with her fingertips, Ami simply smiled. "It's alright, Geta. We have each other now and that's what matters."

"Yes, you're right," he sighed, bending his mouth to hers for a long while before finally releasing her. "And Ami, I'm sorry. Forgive me."

"I already told you, _r'sha_. You're forgiven and I love you."

###############################

Usagi woke to soft kisses and a gentle seduction by skilled hands, and for several minutes honestly thought she was dreaming until she felt the vibration of a loud purr running through her. "Mmm… morning…"

"Heh… I was wondering how far I'd have to go before you woke, _r'sha_."

"That only tempts me to go back to sleep," she chuckled sleepily, sighing with pleasure as his hands began to wander again and his lips traced a rigid nipple. "Still burning?"

"Yeah, but it's about over," he said nonchalantly. "Kakarot's still not in control, though," he added with a wink, giving her the answer to the question she'd been thinking of.

"Oh… well then…" Usagi tugged him down on top of her and immediately wrapped her legs about his waist, licking her lips in anticipation. "I'm yours if you want me."

Kakarot's beast groaned at that, his eyes rolling back as she played with his tail. "Usa, while I appreciate the offer… you're still healing," he sighed, brushing his fingertips over her scalp.

She saw a subtle change in his golden eyes just then and caressed the red fur of his stomach. "Kakarot?" Usagi sighed in disappointment when his eyes got wide in shock and then flickered briefly in anger before he rolled off of her and onto his feet, his body shifting back to his normal form. "And the beastie's gone, isn't it?"

"I—_he_ bit you," the Saiyan snarled, thumping his fist into the wall. "Oh all the stupid, hormonal—"

"I wanted it!" Usagi snapped at him, sitting up in the bed, reflecting briefly that her head didn't feel nearly as bad as she thought it would. Damn, she was almost at a hundred percent; the crystal inside of her was really getting to work! "And you want it too, so don't blame your inner Saiyan over this, Kakarot! After all, he's the _real_ you without all the other bullshit and worries thrown in."

Sensing that she was getting up, he turned and immediately growled at, pointing towards the bed. "Lay back down. Now. You're still healing, Highness."

The use of her title, rather than her name, made her twitch in agitation, and Usagi stalked over to the open closet and snagged a simple gown from one of the hangers. "No. If you want me to stay in the bed, you're going to have to give me a reason to want to be there."

"I'll lay down with you," he ground through his teeth as he threw his beast in a cage and locked it securely in his mind.

"And consummate the bond?" Usagi inquired. When he shook his head stubbornly and his tail thrashed about in agitation, the gown in her hands went over her head and covered all of that perfect, creamy skin, making him growl under his breath. "Don't give me that," she sassed, shoving her way past him towards the door. Kakarot immediately vanished and reappeared before her, blocking her path. "Move. Now. You want me. You love me. You even bit me. But you're being too damned stubborn to own up to it all, and as much as I love you, Kakarot, I'm not going to keep chasing you."

That gave her an idea, but she inwardly smirked as she blocked him from accessing her thoughts through the bond. "Well?"

"You're going right back to bed, Highness. _Now._ Don't make me treat you like a sack of potatoes and put you there myself." He felt a pulse of power from the crystal within her just then and growled loudly. "You going to fight me, princess?"

"Nope. Not at all. But if you want me in bed, Kakarot, you'll have to catch me," she purred. "If you can, that is." And with that, she disappeared.

**Sesshy, you get your update! And it's about to get even more smutty in here! Next chapter's the last yall! And now… I have to go to work… *headdesk***


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